| Forest of Marston Vale | |
|---|---|
Marston Vale Forest Centre | |
| Geography | |
  | |
| Location | Bedfordshire, England |
| Coordinates | 52°03′48″N0°28′29″W / 52.06327°N 0.4747°W Coordinates: 52°03′48″N0°28′29″W / 52.06327°N 0.4747°W |
| Status | community forest |
| Established | 2000 |
| Website | www |
The Forest of Marston Vale is an evolving community forest in Marston Vale, which runs south west from the towns of Bedford and Kempston in Bedfordshire, England towards the M1 motorway. It is operated by a registered charity called the Forest of Marston Vale Trust.
Marston Vale is an area of Bedfordshire. It lies to the south west of Bedford and Kempston, near Junction 13 of the M1 motorway. Historically it was one of the main brickmaking districts in England, home of the London Brick Company, now a division of Hanson plc. The brickmaking activity left scars across the landscape of the Marston Vale as large tracts of land were dug for clay. Most of the claypits are now exhausted, and most of the brickmaking chimneys have been demolished. The legacy of the abandoned brickworks also adds to the impression that the Marston Vale has been despoiled by decades of industrial activity and it is now searching for a new identity. In more recent years the local authorities have taken the opportunity to reuse the clay pits for landfills at Stewartby and Brogborough, both of which are recently capped and closed down.
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, England. The town has an estimated (2017) population of 87,590, whereas the Borough of Bedford had an estimated population of 169,912.
Kempston is a town and civil parish located in Bedfordshire, England. Once known as the largest village in England, Kempston is now a town with its own town council. It has a population of about 20,000, and together with Bedford, it forms an urban area with around 100,000 inhabitants, which is the sole significant urban area in the Borough of Bedford. Kempston serves principally as a dormitory town for Bedford.
Contents
The vale is traditionally a brickmaking area, but brickmaking industry has been running down since the 1970s. It has left a large amount of spoiled countryside containing several large empty pits some of which have now been converted into lakes. The Forest of Marston Vale is one of twelve of community forest projects in the United Kingdom. It was initiated by the Countryside Agency and the Forestry Commission, in partnership with Bedfordshire County Council, Mid Bedfordshire District Council, and Bedford Borough Council. The total area covered is 61 square miles (158 km2), but most of this land is in private ownership. There are incentives for landowners to plant trees, and the target for community forests in general is to reach 30% tree cover.
The Countryside Agency was a statutory body set up in England in 1999 with the task of improving the quality of the rural environment and the lives of those living in it. The Agency was formed by merging the Countryside Commission and the Rural Development Commission. Its powers were inherited from those bodies.
The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in England and Scotland. It was set up in 1919 to expand Britain's forests and woodland after depletion during the First World War. To do this, the commission bought large amounts of former agricultural land, eventually becoming the largest land owner in Britain. The Commission is divided into three divisions: Forestry Commission England, Forestry Commission Scotland and Forest Research. Forestry Commission Scotland reports to the Scottish Government.
Bedfordshire County Council was the county council of the non-metropolitan county of Bedfordshire in England. It was established on 24 January 1889 and was abolished on 1 April 2009. The county council was based in Bedford.
The principal public open space in the Forest is Marston Vale is the Millennium Country Park which covers 2.5 km2 (1 mile2) and was opened in 2000. The park features several lakes including the large Stewartby Lake and extensive wetlands. There is a visitor centre called the Forest Centre, which has a Lakeside Cafe, shop, toilets and bike rental. According to the official website the park attracts around a quarter of a million visitors a year. There are plans to create a larger park of over 3 square miles (7.8 km2) to the east of Bedford, which will be called Bedford River Valley Park.
On 26 January 2018, the UK Environmental Agency granted a permit to Covanta Energy Limited to operate what will be the UK's largest waste incinerator, next to the Forest. [1] [2] The effect of this development remains to be seen.
